III The Destruction of the Zords
by Lizardphobia
Summary: Can be read as a companion piece to Distance and Full Circle for it exists in the same universe. This takes place way before the other two, when the Thunder Zords were lost. After Jason left for Switzerland and before Kimberly left for the Globals. Jason/Kim deep friendship, hint of more if you squint.


She watched as it all went to pieces before her eyes.

Its arm fell off in a spark of flames. Zack.

Then its left leg buckled over and crashed into the ground. The Griffin. Trini. Trini's legacy.

They all crumbled to bits along with pieces of her heart.

She saw her Firebird fauld fall from its rightful place over the Dragon Warrior heart. When the core of the Thunder Megazord fell - the Red Dragon - that's when she really lost it, falling to her knees with a keening wail, screaming incoherently for him.

Her last link to her friends. Her last link to him.

She turned accusing eyes full of anger and even a touch of hate towards their now leader. This person in white. A sight and a color that she had not as of yet grown to truly accept leading the team. You destroyed them.

You _destroyed_ them.

The light went out in the Dragon Warrior's eyes. She wept as she felt it go out in hers.

She had nightmares that night. Terrible, heart wrenching nightmares that made her reach for the phone and call him.

He answered on the first ring, voice thick with sleep but she nearly cried again at the very sound of it.

"Kimberly?"

She couldn't manage words, and the sound of her sobs poured through.

"Kimberly. Kim, what's wrong?" Awake now, alert.

She swallowed hard, and gripped the phone tightly. "He destroyed them. They're all gone. The Zords. _Our_ Zords."

She heard his sharp intake of breath. "Gone?"

She nodded furiously. "All of them. And our-our powers too."

He was silent for a beat, before he spoke again. "How?" he asked, voiced strained.

She let out a strangled sound. "We warned him! _Zordon_ told him. He didn't listen. He doesn-" She made a noise between a half-sob and a furious cry. "The-the Morphing Grid. It overloaded."

"But you're safe? Unhurt?"

She sniffled. "I'm safe."

"And the rest of the team?"

"Adam got it the worst. Compound fracture, his arm. But the rest are mostly fine." Her voice wobbled, "Just shaken… And… lost."

He was audibly relieved and she heard him lean back down on the bed. His words came out low, "Gone. Just like that?"

She blew her nose in reply, too anguished to even speak.

They mourned wordlessly together, she crying, and him quietly there for her. "You're safe. That's what matters," he told her after a while. "You scared me for a moment there."

More sniffles, a heartbroken whimper, then, "M-my link to you is gone." It came out in a broken whisper. "I w-won't be able to feel you anymore. All of you. In battle." A fresh round of sobs poured through. "I- I don't feel safe because I c-can't feel you o-or _see_ you at the head of the cockpit. Not now. N-not anymore."

"Oh, Kim," he said. There was a weighted silence and then, softly, gently, on the sound of his breath, "Kimmie."

He hardly ever called her that anymore. Not since he donned the mantle of the Red Ranger and became their leader. She wanted to cry some more.

"I'm here. I'll always be here. You didn't lose me."

"He destroyed them."

"I don't think he wanted to."

She ignored that. "I want you back. I want all of you back. I want things to go back the way they were."

He sounded pained. "Kimberly..."

She could very nearly picture his face then. Eyes closed and jaw taut. She wished that he was there with her, or her with him, it didn't matter. She wished that they could all grieve together, the five of them, like before.

"Be brave, Kim. You need to. You're the heart of the team." It was awhile before he spoke again, but she knew that the loss hurt him just as much as it hurt her. "There's always a way. Things may not look good now, but... Trust in Zordon. And Tommy."

"I trust _you_."

"Then trust me when I tell you that it'll be okay."

"Will it?"

"Have I ever lied to you before?"

"No, Jase. Never."

"Trust me again then."

She attempted a smile through her tears. "I miss you."

"Me too, Kim," he said, quiet and deep. But I know that I've left the team in capable hands. I've left _you_ in capable hands. Billy too."

She hesitated. "He's not... He's not you," she whispered. And there it was. She'd said it. It was horrible to admit, but she felt a weight lift off her shoulders after having admitted it.

He didn't miss a beat. "No, he isn't. And I'm not him. But he's your leader now, you have to trust him." He paused to draw breath, and said gravely, "He _needs_ you to trust him, Kimberly."

She kept quiet a long while, listening to the steady sound of his breathing, knowing that his words were true.

"Will you... Will you stay with me?"

"Yes," he said simply. She heard the sheets rustle as he got comfortable. "The time when we met? Or the one where you skinned your knee when you were nine and made me carry you all the way home?"

She smiled, her cheeks feeling tight from dried tears.

"The time you defended Billy from those punks."

He laughed softly. "I barely remember that one. But I'll try okay? Fill me in on any details I miss."

He began to talk, sketching a memory with his words, lulling her into the safety of sleep with the sound of his voice.

Just like he used to, just like he would always do.

 _fin._


End file.
